Logging Camp Canyon - Phase 1

Columbia Land Trust used this funding for the Logging Camp Canyon project, which completed the purchase of 293 acres of land critical to the long-term protection of steelhead spawning habitat. Logging Camp Creek provides one of the last and best vestiges of quality spawning and rearing habitat accessible to steelhead and coho in the entire Klickitat River watershed. Its mature forest canopy maintains suitable water temperatures, woody debris recruitment and other watershed functions important to salmonids. Additionally, the surrounding lands maintain steep slope stability, water recharge and late season discharge to maintain pools.

Purchase of this property ensures that spawning and rearing habitat will be protected from development and degradation. Wild steelhead stocks (summer and winter run) are federally threatened and have limited tributary spawning and rearing opportunities in this portion of the basin.

This project complemented a number of habitat restoration activities within the watershed including a County-sponsored Logging Camp Canyon Passage Improvement Grant (SRFB - #99-1939R), and two two Yakama Nation/BPA projects. These projects involved riparian plantings in conjunction with the SRFB Passage Project and project monitoring via TFW habitat inventory methodology, spawner surveys and snorkel counts.

The goal of the project was to protect native riparian vegetation along salmon bearing streams. The objective of the project is to protect and restore natural streamside vegetation, improve stream temperature, reduce erosion, filtration, and recruit large woody debris.